In the 1990s, the suicide rate dipped with the crime rate. But since 2000, it has risen, and jumped particularly sharply among the middle-aged. The suicide rate for people aged 35 to 54 increased nearly 30 per cent between 1999 and 2010; for men in their 50s, it rose nearly 50 per cent. More people now die of suicide than in car accidents, and gun suicides are almost twice as common as gun homicides.

This trend is striking without necessarily being surprising. As the University of Virginia sociologist Brad Wilcox pointed out recently, there’s a strong link between suicide and weakened social ties: people – and especially men – become more likely to kill themselves ”when they get disconnected from society’s core institutions (for example, marriage, religion) or when their economic prospects take a dive (for example, unemployment)”.

That’s exactly what we’ve seen lately among the middle-aged male population, whose suicide rates have climbed the fastest: a retreat from family obligations, from civic and religious participation and from full-time paying work.

It’s so sad how many people lose hope in their lives. This is because they have not been given an opportunity to understand who they really are, their purpose in life and about their inherent nature to pursue spirituality. Sadly, many people view spiritual activity as something meant for the emotionally weak, the superstitious, the old-fashioned and those who have nothing better to do. What many don’t realize is that every single human (atheist or theist) has a natural inclination to serve God. This is what separates us from animals. It cannot be taken away. But without proper facilities, teachers and encouragement to help people connect spiritually, they continue to work hard to serve their own senses hoping to find an answer to their lives and not knowing that their own body & senses will eventually let them down. It always has and it always will.